The California FAIR Plan Association is asking a judge to order the former homeowners of a Malibu residence that burned down in the Palisades Fire in January to get together with a judgment creditor to settle between themselves who is entitled to nearly $230,000 in benefits.
The FAIR Plan’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit also asks a judge to restrain both sides from filing any actions against the FAIR Plan to recover the benefits.
The FAIR Plan was established so all California property owners have access to basic fire insurance when access to coverage in the traditional market is not available. The Rambla Pacific home that was destroyed in the Jan. 7 blaze belonged to Marina Grasic and Jan Korbelin, the suit states.
The judgment creditor, Jonathan Paley, alleges that Grasic and Korbelin fraudulently transferred the property and other assets to avoid satisfying Paley’s judgment against the pair in a separate lawsuit. The FAIR Plan paid Grasic and Korbelin for damage to the property, but $228,515 for personal property losses and fair rental value remain at issue because both sides have made claims for the money.
“The FAIR Plan cannot determine which of the competing claimants is entitled to receive the policy benefits,” according to the suit, which further states that the money is in escrow for now with the Los Angeles County Clerk.
The FAIR Plan also seeks attorneys’ fees.